The Water, Him and I
by utsukushiidesire
Summary: Without a good father figure in her life, she looks to one boy growing up. He becomes her guide, her guardian, and everything else she's ever dreamed of along the way. Take a seat, join the journey and watch, as Sila Mallory's love for this little merman begins to blossom into something far more than '"just a brother". Haru x OC.
1. Chapter 1

Hello everyone, it's K.  
I'm extremely happy to present to you, my very first work on this website!

This will be a fanfiction involving Free! Iwatobi Swim Club's very own Nanase Haruka!  
This is also a fanfiction dedicated to S (DreamerType), in which the main "heroine" of the story  
will be an embodiment of her. Yes, this story will feature an OC under her own choice name. Feel free to mentally replace that name with yours should you choose to as you read on haha! This will be written from Sila and Haruka's first/third person POV. I apologize if any characters are OOC throughout the story, as will I be changing a few details here and there.

* Anything in the story displayed in _italics_, are the characters thoughts and/or represent sounds from any type of physical interaction within the story.

_Please read at your own discretion for this story will be rated M for mature attributes including;  
language, and content._ (**NOTE**: It will feature some explicit scenes in future chapters!)

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own the series Free! Iwatobi Swim Club, it's characters, plot-line or any qualities involved the series such as; setting, and etc. All credit rightfully goes to Masahiro Yokotani. I only claim credit for the OC character, Sila Mallory and other names original to the story, but irrelevant to the actual anime.

Without further ado, enjoy! This is _The Water, Him and I._

* * *

| Iwatobi Elementary School, 6th Grade |

"…nii-chan.."

"…ru-nii-chan.."

"HARU-NII-CHAN!"

His eyes flew open, everything blurry and groggy, but with much haste in adjusting to the light. He turned his vision upwards, not that it needed to go up too high regardless as he cupped his eyes from the bright rays of sunlight only to see Sila. She wasn't his sister by blood, but by a close family friendship. They had been together since around the time of birth. Although he was only a month ahead of her in age, they grew up together. From crib life, to their first steps, and even upon entrance into kindergarten.. You could always find them side by side.

"Ugh.. What is it Sila? And I told you to stop calling me that..." He frowned, throwing off another audible sigh out of irritation. He got up and rested his hand on top of Sila's head, rubbing it reassuringly whilst still in a light daze. "Haru-nii-chan, you fell asleep outside again.. You'll be late for swim!" she said, tugging on his arm roughly and looking up at him with those pleading brown eyes. Yawning and patting his mouth with his free hand, he kept his teary stare firm on her face. " Shouldn't you be getting home? I'm fi—", he cut himself off with wide eyes, pausing dead in his tracks, and soon ran full throttle towards the school's multipurpose building entrance with realization that he could not be, would not be late to a practice. There they had quite a number of miscellaneous rooms used for various afterschool clubs, including the gym and the school's very small, yet very efficient swimming pool. "There isn't a practice in the world Haru-nii-chan would miss.." Sila chuckled quietly to herself while watching Haru's back disappear into the building. She smiled a painful smile at the thought of returning home. She didn't want to. That was the last place on earth she would want to return to and there was only one reason for that, if that reason was even present at the time.. but she didn't have much of a choice. Her house was only a few blocks away, a short enough distance for her to be able to get to school and back just by walking. It was a very evenly proportioned house; graced with smooth, white cement under burgundy-stained roofs, about medium in overall size, with a sporty three car garage and balconies that extended out towards the front of the house, protruding from opposing sides. She stood in front of the doorbell, staring at it hesitantly before finally reaching out a finger to activate the contraption. _DING DONG_~ After a few minutes of waiting, the call was answered with a brief, "Yes? This is the Mallory residence". She looked into the camera and replied, "Mama? It's me Sila. Please open the gate!"

"Ah! Sila! One moment honey."

_BRRRRRRRIIIINNNGGG_~

The gate opened and Sila walked inside. "I'm home!", she shouted while closing the front door, slipping her feet out of her shoes and properly placing them below the step. Her mother entered to greet her. She was a beautiful middle-aged woman, with medium length dark brown hair and hazel brown eyes to compliment. Short, pale and petite.

"Welcome home baby! How was school?", her mother asked.

"Fine.", she replied.

"How was Haru today?", came yet another repetitive question slipping out of her mother's mouth while she took Sila into a warm embrace.

"The usual.", she responded while wrapping her arms around her mother's back gently in response. "I caught him sleeping under the cherry blossom tree on the side of M building, and he was nearly late to swim practice again. You should've been there to see his face Mama! His eyes got so big, I couldn't help but laugh to myself when he left. He looked like a galloping ho—". Sila was in the middle of answering, but was suddenly cut off by another voice. "What took you so long?" This one was lower, monotone and masculine, and she knew right away. "P-Papa is here..?", she stuttered in a hushed, shaky tone. Goosebumps formed on her skin, and tremors took control of every nerve in her body. She was scared. "Sila, get your ass over here. Don't you dare test my patience and make me wait.", he hollered. Sila fearfully glanced up at her mother's face, who bit her lip and returned a look of to just get going. She walked into the living room with her mother following, only to find a tall, slender, middle-aged man with jet black hair and tan skin sitting at the dining table. He was in the middle of holding and reading a newspaper with one hand, and detaching his lips from a cup of coffee sitting in the other. Sila's mother looked at him with disgust. "Mind your tongue Tatsuya.", she hissed. He stood up and slammed his newspaper down on the table, causing Sila to run to take cover behind her mother. Glaring at the two, he scowled in return,"Why don't you watch yours Katsumi? I asked for the girl, not your fucking habitual bickering so shut. Up." The sprouting tears became evident in Sila's eyes as she thought to herself, "_Here they go again.. I hate papa, I really hate him._"

Her parents were divorced, and Sila lived with her mother. However, every now and then Sila's father, Tatsuya, would come to visit. It's not like they had the will to refuse. Regardless of their ever so deepening hatred for each other, she feared him and he wanted to see the only child he bore with whom he held such strict expectation from. Even as a student in the top 5% of her class, he still looked at her like some sort of disappointment. In his eyes, that wasn't good enough, and Sila needed to try even harder with time. It was an everyday struggle to meet his merciless perfectionist ways and she hated every bit of the journey. Sila also wasn't allowed to go to her father's house by herself, nor did she want to out of any personal desire. He was cruel, vicious.. Seemingly obsessed with unleashing his malicious fury on them come every visit. Always patronizing Sila and his former wife. Mocking them, yelling at them, threatening them and notoriously getting into one conflict after another.. You name it. Whether the argument was over something trivial, or over something of significant concern, they were all the same nonetheless. Cussing, screaming, slamming. To the extent where things have been thrown and broken, and brutal physical contact was made. He was a force that shouldn't be reckoned with. This was not only out of advantage over one's own initial precautionary awareness, but also to render themselves safe of any "impending" harm.

"Sila, it's almost 4:00. Your mother should've told you that you were supposed to be home twenty minutes to 3. Where the fuck were you?", he started fiercely, throwing piercing charcoal black glares back and forth between the two.

"I don't have all goddamn day child, answer me."

The small, fragile girl planted her feet, hidden in fear behind her mother. She remained silent, tears trailing down her face one after the other.

"Sila.", he warned, stepping closer. "Answer me. Now."

Still, she remained quiet, unable to talk as her father reached his hand towards her only to be halted by her mother. "Tatsuya, do not put your hands on her.", Katsumi threatened. He sneered for a brief moment, and shoved her out of the way. _BANG_~ At this, Sila became enraged, raising her voice at him as the tears flowed from her eyes. "PAPA! STOP HURTING MAMA LIKE THAT!", she blared out, making an escape from her father's savage hands to her mother who had taken a painful seat to the floor from impact. Sila crouched down, and hugged the bawling woman tight. It wasn't a big deal, the whereabouts that caused her to get home almost an hour late. Sila was simply tired of answering to such a well.. asshole tone. Tired of being afraid but, such disciplinary views were no justification to Sila's rebellious behavior in his book. Retaliation was like one daunting step towards her demise, and she knew to stand her place whenever it came to Tatsuya's turbulent behavior. Tatsuya turned towards them, stating blatantly, "You are a disappointment, and your mother is no better a person." Insult after insult. "You are but a burdening insect in my life Sila. You will never live up to my expectations. I'm tired of coming all the way down here to a failure of a child. In fact, how could I possibly consider you my own blood when you can't even respect your father down to the simplest of requests." Disbelief and shock were written all over her mother's helpless face, and with words as repulsive as this, Sila stood up, her fists tightened into a ball. Her blood was boiling. She was only in the sixth grade and yet her father felt it necessary to degrade Sila in any and every way possible. "For goodness sake Tatsuya, she's only in the sixth grade! What more do you want from her?!", her mother blurted out. Even with her mother on her side, she still felt all the same. Alone. Hatred was tormenting her from every atom and particle that made up her entirety.

"_I hate you... I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you._"

These were thoughts that she could not keep to herself any longer. "I HATE YOU!", she screeched, her once feather-like voice bouncing off every nook and crevice in the house. She let her emotions get the best of her, and it took only a few seconds before she was outside the front gate. Running, crying, running and crying some more. Going where the wind took her, she ended up in a park far on the other side of the neighborhood. Wheezing, and gasping for air, Sila climbed the slide and hid in the circular play tunnel that connected the different parts of the playground together. "What am I doing..? I have no phone and it's getting dark…", she muttered weakly to herself as she hugged her knees into her chest. Burying her face into them, she continuously sobbed, whimpering only one word she knew best. One word she knew like the back of her hand. One word that was able to turn all her pain into happiness in a matter of seconds.

"_Haru.._", she thought.

" I want Haru-nii-chan…"

Hours passed by, but Sila remained balled up inside the tube. Night was creeping onto her, and by the time she had realized it, she peaked outside to be welcomed by nothing but darkness. Maybe the moon, stars and a few dimly lit streetlights lined up down the roads would provide a guide to getting her back home safely. Yet again, fear consumed her mind but this time it wasn't over her dad, but over the fact that she was alone in the dark. In the midst of this realization, she still was unwilling to actually return home. "_Papa crossed the line.._", she thought to herself. As she began to walk, Sila felt a small drop of moisture hit her cheek. She wiped it off. "_Rain..?_" She sighed and paced herself, walking a little faster than before. The rain however didn't stop, and the droplets began to pursue her with harder hits. "Ow.. Ow! Ouch..!", she complained as they fell onto her endlessly. She soon took refuge inside a 24 hour service convenience store called "Kazoku no Michi". It was a store located not by her elementary school, but further down by the high school which was still quite a considerable distance from home. Sila looked down, only to notice that she was completely drenched head to toe in water then looked back up to find the cashier walking her way.

"Hello little miss, how may I help you? Are you lost?", he asked.

Sila shook her head, and tears began to form in her eyes again. The cashier frowned and walked over to the candy aisle. He grabbed a package of reese's cups and walked back to her. Crouching down to meet her height, he handed her the candy. "Don't cry anymore little miss.. There there, take that. It's on the house, but don't tell my boss!", he joked, and laughed in her direction. Sila smiled and continuously wiped the tears from her eyes. "My my, what a beautiful smile you have there. Did you have a bad day?", he asked, offering his hand. Sila took it, nodded and was guided to a chair that was set up behind the cash register. She turned around, placed her hands on the seat and propped herself up to sit on it. The cashier went back to the candy aisle, and returned with a few more packages of reese's. He handed them to her and smiled again, "My name is Akihito, but please call me Aki-san for short. Is that all right?" The little girl looked up at him with her beaming café-colored eyes over the pile of chocolate she now cradled in her arms. "My name is Sila, Sila Mallory! Thank you for the candy Aki-san!", another radiant smile sent his way.

_DING~_

The automatic doors slid open and in walked another child. Removing his hood, folding his umbrella, and shaking it over the welcome mat to discard all the excess water that was built up on the clear plastic hood revealed it to be none other than Haru. When Sila looks over and realizes it's him, all the candy drops from her arms and in a matter of seconds, she's launched herself around him yelling his name. "HARU-NII-CHAN.. HARU-NII-CHAN! I knew you would come for me. I knew it!", she gleamed. After finally realizing who it was, Haru lets his guard down, and narrows his eyes. "Sila, you're being too loud. I'm going to go deaf.", he states, but Sila doesn't let go. Instead, he begins to feel pressured quivering, and faint sobs fill his ears. "I'm only here on an errand for my mom.", he states again. No matter how blunt he's being, Sila does nothing but tighten her hold. With this, Haru sighs and brings his hand up to her head lightly. "What happened..?", he finally asks in a murmur.

"Home.", she replies meekly.

* * *

Alright, that's it for chapter one you guys!  
Thanks for taking the time to read it.

I apologize if Haru wasn't involved enough in this chapter, but that's only because I made this more of an introduction chapter to Sila rather than a fastpass opening to the actual story. I also apologize if it was a bit short in length, but please look forward to upcoming chapters! I promise you all that not only will they be longer, but a lot more Haru will come with it as well.

It is the summer which means I'll have a lot more time to write and update this story, and I'm pretty excited! I hope you all are to.

Oh, and don't forget to leave me a review do you wish to! Constructive criticism would be much appreciated. I know this is my first story and I have a lot to work on, but I want to make the effort to perfect it to the best it can possibly be.

Much love,  
K.


	2. Chapter 2

K again, and welcome to Chapter 2 of The Water, Him and I.  
I'm so sorry for not updating this story earlier, but i've been extremely sidetracked with some things outside the internet world. Forgive me! ＼(＠O＠)／

This chapter will include content continuously written in third person point of view. Sila/Haru first person POV will be instituted in future chapters. I hope that doesn't take away any of your interest in continuing to read this story! If so, then i most humbly apologize. Anyways, this chapter is a lot longer than the last one so you will have a lot more to read. I do hope you've taken a liking to this story so far.

As for the characters in the story, i did notice it might have been super weird to realize that Sila is the only one in her family who doesn't have a Japanese first name. I kind of made her parents names up on the spot, so forgive me for that as well!

* The disclaimer is all that will be repetitive in this top portion of the works. Just to be safe.  
* All credit of the cover image to this story belongs to Sakon04 from deviantart. (If you ever happen to see this, i apologize for not asking for permission in advance! Just message me if you would rather me take it down.)

That is all, please enjoy~

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own the series Free! Iwatobi Swim Club, it's characters, plot-line or any qualities involved the series such as; setting, and etc. All credit rightfully goes to Masahiro Yokotani. I only claim credit for the OC character, Sila Mallory and other names original to the story, but irrelevant to the actual anime.

* * *

Haru keeps silent and begins to rub her head gently. Time doesn't stop and a matter of it has passed by most considerably, but Haru doesn't move, no. He doesn't budge an inch, not even a centimeter from his spot. He stands there, eyes shut, trying to silence the poor weeping little girl with every meaningfully miniscule stroke.

"Sila.", he mutters.

"We can't stay here forever you know?"

Catching up to the reality of time, his eyes open and shift over to the stranger of a cashier who is picking up all the dropped candy and storing them in a small plastic bag. Slowly but surely, the man over at the register makes his way to the children, quite attentive to the fact that the little girl standing before him could break down even more in a matter of seconds under the wrong action. Sila is still silently clinging onto Haru, but Haru knows that if he continues to hesitate any longer at breaking contact with her, the consequences he's bound to run into at home would be something. "We can talk more at home, my home, okay?", he says pausing, then beginning again. "Sila.", he says in a tone a little louder than before. At this, Sila reluctantly retracts her arms and brushes away the remaining tears. "I-I'm sorry…", she stutters quietly. She turns around to the humble look of Akihito, who is standing at a respectful distance with her candy. When he notices that Sila is no longer latching herself onto the small boy behind her, he approaches her and holds out the bag. "Here.. you dropped these.", he says with a smile. Sila sniffles, bows and apologizes for her careless actions. "I'm sorry Aki-san, but ahh— that's right! That's right!", she beams. She turns around to her black-haired little friend who has zoned out looking at some random place else, and grabs his arm pulling his attention back onto her. He blinks twice, his pokerface game on as she pulls him one step forward by her side.

"Aki-san, this is Haru-nii-chan.", she says while she wraps her arm around his, locking him into place. Haru gazes at the man nonchalantly, and attempts to bow.

"Hello mister, my name is Haruka.. Haruka Nanase.", he says lifting his head.

"Pleasure to meet you, my name is Akihito. However, you may also call me Aki-san.", the man replies.

"I've noticed you are running behind on your errand Haruka-kun. Just grab what you need to, bag 'em up and head on home. I'll gladly take care of the payment."

Sila smiles wide, Haru with nothing, and at that they both give a deep bow.

"THANK YOU AKI-SAN!", she beams, clapping her hands. If anything, Sila is the very epitome of someone who is easily amused.

"Anything to keep a smile on this charming little princess's face.", he replies, looking down at the overjoyed juvenile and opening his arms.

Sila releases Haru's arm and runs to give the taller man a joyful squeeze. By the time Sila let's go, she notices Haru returning to the entrance holding bags full of the mysterious items. Haru then tosses his jacket to the small girl. "Wear that, before you catch a cold.", he insists. "Thank you very much Aki-san, goodnight.", he leaves off, bowing again before turning to leave.

"Sila, come on! Hurry up before I leave you."

_DING~_

"Ah! Wait for me Haru-nii-chan!", Sila yells at Haru's back who has already managed to make it outside the doors. She rushes to put on his jacket, and runs after him, taking cover under his umbrella. Needless to say, it's still raining. She turns around and waves at the cashier who is bowing in farewell. "GOODBYE AKI-SAN! THANK YOU! I'LL COME TO SEE YOU AGAIN!", she shouts. He lifts himself up, smiles and waves back as the small children make their way out of visibility. "Take care, and be careful.", he says to himself before going back to work for the remainder of the night.

Nothing but the seemingly perpetual pitter-patter of rain drowned out their very urge to speak the entire way home. It might've hurt Sila before, but under the safety of Haru's umbrella and having him by her side incited sure comfort. After a while, with Haru's house in view, he breaks the silence.

"Your parents must be worried. Are you sure you don't want to go back to your own house..?", he says keeping his gaze forward.

"No, I don't want to go back there.", she replies bluntly.

"Sila, I'm right next door. The least you could do is—"

"NO!", she intervenes. Her grip tightens on the handle of his umbrella and he goes silent. They hastily make their way past her house to the front gate of his. "Alright, calm down..", void ocean blue eyeing the doorbell. He presses it and a firm, medium-tone voice answers.

"Haru! Where have you been? You're late. Who is that with you?", the voice says as a click is sounded from behind the speaker.

BRRNG BRRNNGG~

The gate opens.

"I'm sorry, Sila is here with me. We're coming in.", he replies.

When they get to the front door, Haru puts down the groceries, retracts the umbrella, and shakes off the excess water just like before. They wipe their boots of any moisture and dirt and enter the house.

"Sila, love! What're you doing here? Your mother called earlier in a panic wondering if you were with us.", says the source of the voice who answered the doorbell. A young woman presents herself, presumably in her early thirties. Adorned with ebony black hair tied up in a bun and sumptuous sapphire eyes making their way to Sila's dampened clothes, she frowns.

"Goodness gracious Sila, you're still soaked some! Have Haru take you upstairs to get a change of clothes. I'll call your mother and let her know that you're here and safe.", furrowed brows take place of the concerned glower. With this, she grabs the bags and begins to leave the entranceway.

"Yes ma'am..", Sila replies, giving a small tug on Haru's arm when the woman's finally gone. He looks down towards her.

"I don't want to go home…", she pleads in a whisper.

"You have to Sila, you can't stay here.", he answers.

"No! I absolutely will not go home!", she pouts, shaking her head furiously and continuously yanking at his arm.

"Are you crazy?", he retorts. "You will go home."

Tears form in her eyes for the fifth time this night. "_Here come the waterworks. Anything but that.._", he thinks to himself, looking away from Sila. "Fine…", he mutters under his breath, but Sila is too busy whining to notice. "Okay, OKAY!", he snaps.

"I'll ask my mom so can you please stop fussing and let go of my arm?".

Sila eagerly obeys, and releases him. The image of a puppy pops up into his mind as he walks away to find his mother. When he reaches her, she's still on the phone in the middle of her conversation, assuring away.

"Katsumi, she's alright. She came in still a bit dampened, but Haru was with her."

"Mom..", a light pull on her apron makes way.

The woman covers the handset microphone, and speaks softly towards the boy.

"Haru, not right now honey.. I'm on the phone."

"Mom, Sila's refusing to go home.. Do you think she could sleep here?", he adds in straightforwardly, disregarding the murmurs coming from the other line.

"… Katsumi, would you hold on a moment?"

_murmurmurmur_~

"Yes. Mhm. Alright, thank you. It'll only be a moment."

She puts her hand back over the microphone, and gives Haru a fiery glare. "You are only in the sixth grade! She cannot possibly stay the night here. Haru, try to renegotiate with her or something!", she shouts in a whisper.

"I tried!", he replies. "She started crying mom.."

The glare settles, and the woman bites her lip in contemplation. "I don't know Haru..", she prompts. "We can at least try, right? I don't think she's gonna change her mind anytime soon.", vacant azure instigates. "Alright Haru, I'll talk to her mother about it but I can't guarantee anything.", she replies. His mother looks at the clock on the side of the phone. "It's almost 10 anyways..", she sighs. "Don't just stand there Haru, get going and help the poor girl. She must be freezing to death!", the lady over-exaggerates shooing him away with her hand, and gets back to the phonecall as promised.

"Yes, Katsumi? I apologize for the wait, but there's something I'd like to talk to you about…"

Her voice drifts off as Haru returns to the entrance. There, a certain little Sila is sitting about on their entrance porch step. "Hey.. my mom said she would talk to your mom. Get up.", he demands, placing his hand on her shoulder. Sila turns to him, eyes half closed.

"What the..? Sila, did you really fall asleep already?! I was only gone for like 5 minutes.", he shakes his head in disbelief. "Haru-nii-chan…", the little girl replies weakly. She lifts her arms up.

"Tired… Carry me…..", she states rather than asks, giving Haru little grabby hands.

"Tch.. what a pain you are.", he replies, a touch of pink clashes his cheeks as he pulls the girl onto his back. He doesn't forget her goodies either. "At least hold on by yourself..", he asserts before beginning to walk. "Mhm…", the little girl positions herself and clings onto him. He's able to make it halfway up the stairs when he throws out a little side comment. "Geez, you're so heavy.. and everything in this bag isn't helping your situation much either.", he remarks, shuffling around to readjust himself into a more comfortable position. When he reaches the top of the stairs, he takes Sila to his room dropping the bag down by the door in an instant, turning on the lights and following suit to sit her down on his bed. He walks away only to return with a pair of pajamas nestled up in his arms. He throws them at her and they land on her head and lap, unfolded and disoriented. "Those are mine, I guess you can use them..", he groans. "Thank you Haru-nii-chan…", an exhausted smile sweeps across her face as he walks towards his door. "Yeah.. Just get changed and come outside when you're done.", he quickly exits and presses his back up against the wall across the hallway, arms drooping down at his sides, waiting patiently. A few minutes later…

_KACHONK_~

The door opens, and out comes Sila in her new baggy attire. "I'm here..", she gripes, a little too antsy to hop back into the plush of Haru's bed. "Come. Eat some dinner first.", slender ivory digits wrap themselves around Sila's own. He's blushing ever so slightly, but she doesn't notice as he takes lead in dragging her back down the stairs. "Hmph…", he grunts. Sila notices.

"Hm..? What is it Haru-nii-chan..?"

"Huh? O-Oh, nothing..", he replies, heedlessly letting go of her hand when they reach the bottom. They walk into the dining room, when they notice Haru's mother finishing up the last couple of preparations for dinner. On the table, a variety of foods are laid before them. They're incredibly vibrant in color, and the rising heat hits their noses with quite the pleasant aroma. Haru's mom takes notice to the two children standing at the dining room doorway and invites them in eagerly. "What're you two doing? Come on over and have a seat!", she chimes. "Ah, and Sila.. I talked to your mother about you staying the night, and somehow I managed to get her permission". Sila's eyes widen and she runs to the woman, throwing her arms around her enthusiastically. "THANK YOU SO MUCH AUNTIE!", she cries out. "You're welcome darling, but she says you must be home before 12pm sharp tomorrow morning.", she replies, wrapping her arms back around the little girl. With that, they take their seats at the table. "Itadekimasu!", all but one says. Haru's father just silently bows his head in respect, without so much as even whispering a word. Throughout dinner, Sila is playfully harassing Haru, who to no avail, just sits there and continues to eat with an emotionless expression on his face. His mother is constantly giving off a small smirk to the two children then returns to her own plate, and his father eats silently as he goes through a newspaper. His presence is equivalent to that of a damn ghost. When everyone is finished with dinner, Haru goes to give a helping hand to his mother with the dishes. His father still hasn't said a word and disappears, probably to prep for bed already. Naturally, Sila decides to go and follow Haru.

"Is there anything I can help with auntie?", she pleads.

"Not a thing my dear. Why don't you and Haru head upstairs? I'll finish things up here."

"Yes ma'am!", Sila bows.

"Alright.", Haru walks off, leaving Sila behind as usual.

"Ah! Waaaiiittt foooorrr meeeee~!", she exclaims, pacing herself to catch up to him. She turns around and yells back to his mother as she fastens her hands to his shirt.

"Thank you again for dinner auntie!"

They make their way upstairs, and Haru leads her to their family's guest room. It's a very traditional-looking room spiced up with some westernized decorations. To the furthest side of the room, a twin-sized bed is centered against the wall.

"Go brush your teeth, there should be a brand new toothbrush in the cabinet under the sink. I'll wait out here.", he says, pointing to the door on the side furthest left from them. "Haru-nii-chan.. Can you come with me? I'm scared..", she whimpers. "It's just a bathroom Sila..", he gripes. "Please…", she continues, pulling on his arm. "God, you're such a baby..", he snarls, baring his teeth in annoyance. "Pfft". He follows her into the bathroom, leaning up against the door. "Hurry up.", he presses, an irritated tone taking flight in his words. When Sila finishes, he brushes his own and walks her back over to the bed. She boosts herself up onto it and shimmies herself under the covers. Haru does nothing but roll his eyes and tucks her in.

"Comfortable?", he asks.

"Yep!", she beams, yawning afterwards.

"Kay, goodnight Sila.", he turns to get up off the bed, but something stops him. Sila's reached out and grabbed onto his shirt.

"U-Um… Haru-nii-chan..?"

"W-What?!", he snaps.

"Eep!", she jumps and let's go of his shirt out of impulse, bringing the sheets up to cover part of her face. Only her eyes are showing, and she's trembling.

Haru sighs. "I'm sorry.. I didn't mean to scare you like that. What do you want Sila?"

"D-Do you think you could possibly.. stay here… with me..?". She remains tucked under the covers.

"What are you say—"

"P-Please! I'm scared.. I don't want to sleep alone, so.. Please…", she interrupts, popping her head out from the sheets and tilting it to the side.

"H-Haru-nii-chan…", she urges, her voice quiet and light.

"Uggghhh…", he turns towards her, grabbing her wrist with tender hands. Almond-shaped cocoa eyes find their way to his and penetrate the very walls of 'no'. "_Puppy eyes, again..?_".

"Alright already.", he gives in. "Let me at least go and turn off the lights."

She lets go. Haru walks over and presses down on the lightswitch. _CLICK_~ 'OFF' it reads, and he makes his way back to the bed. "Scooch.", he demands. Sila wiggles her minikin body over and makes room for the burdened little coal-haired boy. Sila takes a pillow and places in on the outer side of her and lays in opposition of it. Haru snuggles himself up under the blanket, his back facing her face.

"There..", he murmurs.

"Thank you…", she replies, clearly still dissatisfied.

"What's wrong now?", he catches a hint of discontent in her voice much to his dismay.

"Will you.. face me?", she asks, averting her gaze downwards sheepishly. Haru's eyes widen slightly, but take only a few seconds to return to normal. He doesn't complain this time, and simply obeys, turning himself over so he's facing her. "Anything else?", he asks.

"N-No…", she replies, her eyes still casted downwards. Short, chestnut colored side-swept bangs cover her sated gaze.

"Are you sure?", he asks again in reassurance.

"Mhm..", she assures.

"Alright, goodnight Sila.", he departs with these final words, and closes his eyes. Sila stays up, and a few minutes later, she's focused her sight and embarked on a mission to take hold of his shirt.. again. She reaches out her hand and slowly seizes the sleeve of his shirt. Haru was on the verge of finally falling into deep sleep after a long, exasperating day, and at this, he slowly opens one eye and lets out a deep sigh. "I knew you weren't done..", he whispers in a raspy voice. He says nothing more after that, and simply grabs her hand, taking it into his. He interlocks their fingers, gives her hand a little squeeze, and closes his eyes only to fall into the genuine deep sleep he's been anxiously waiting for. Sila's face turns a bright shade of red, and goes to shut her own ever so tightly. A few minutes later, Haru's mother makes her round into the room to find two little rugrats sound asleep in bed.

"_I can't wake him up like that.._".

She smiles and leaves, closing the door soundlessly behind her.

Her hand is in his, and he shakes it off. She attempts to grab for it again, but he smacks it away fiercely. The only sound that enters her ability to hear, is that of the hit. Everything else is drowned out in silence. It's like she's become deaf to everything else but the sound of her worst fear. Selective hearing? No. This is a nightmare. She draws in her hand, tending to it with the other. He turns to hers, piercing blue eyes like ice leave her completely shaken up as he walks away.

"HARU-NII-CHAN!", she yells, but he can't hear her and continues to walk.

"_Why can't he hear me..? Why…?_".

"HARU-NII-CHAN! HARU-NII-CHAN!", she screams, bringing her voice up a notch. He still can't hear her, but for what reason..?

"_Is he ignoring me? What did I do..?_".

"HARU-NII-CHAN!", her voice hits its highest octave and she shrieks his name at the top of her little lungs.

She falls onto her knees, and stares as the salty drops of water build up in her eyes. Her vision becomes blurry and endless tears trail down her cheeks. She can't stop crying. No matter what she does, she can't and soon enough, her vision blacks out as the sight of his back disappears into the darkness.

"_He left me_."

Sila wakes up calling out his name, and begins to hyperventilate. She's already broken out into a cold sweat, and her vision is still fuzzy, taking it's time to put things back into crystal clear view. She curls up into a ball, hugging her knees into her chest as reality hits her. Haru is still there. He wakes up in a panic to the sound of her voice and her rapid, fragmented breaths. He stares at her as the cogs in his brain are just barely beginning to turn.

"Sila..?", he questions.

No answer. She just stares at him in terror, eyes widened, breathing ragged.

"S-Sila…", her name barely audible, escapes his lips in the form of some sort of concerned insinuation. Haru's finally able to function properly in addition to just having woken up, and he slowly reaches his hands towards her.

No answer yet again, but she flinches and her eyes move to his hand. He pauses, and frowns seriously as he takes in notice to her now moistened eyes. The grip around her legs tighten.

"Har—". Her mouth shuts instinctively, and she's unable to finish her word, let alone even utter another. Haru doesn't hesitate another moment, and takes her into his arms, embracing her coolly. She's trembling at the sudden contact, and her weary eyes can't bear the weight any longer. She breaks down; shaking profusely, whimpering his name here and there, crying and grabbing at Haru nonstop for dear life as if in the next passing second, he'd be gone. He never moved, but her breathing settles and they stay nestled in one another's arms for a while longer.

Haru scans his range of vision over to the electronic clock on the nightstand beside the bed.

It reads '9:27AM'. He takes a few more minutes before managing to speak.

"How bad was it?", he asks.

Sila tightens her embrace, scrunching up sections of his shirt into her hands.

"…The worst.", she answers.

When Sila's calmed down enough and finishes washing herself up in the bathroom, they leave together to go and get some breakfast. Downstairs, her parents were clearly unaware of the little mishap that unfolded only minutes before. They've suspected nothing, going about their morning like usual. Haru's father is sitting on his recliner in the living room across, reading a newspaper and sipping on tea. His mother is still in the middle of cooking breakfast. When she hears footsteps, she turns over to greet them.

"Goodmorning my little knight in shining armor, princess!", she smiles.

"Come on! Take a seat, breakfast will be served shortly.".

The two go and grab a seat next to each other, same as yesterday. Haru's mother returns to the dining table from the kitchen with trays of meals hand-selected and crafted per youngster.

"Mackerel, rice and a cup of water for Haru".

"Octopus wieners, apple slices cut into rabbits, eggs, miso soup, rice and a cup of green tea for Sila.", Haru's mom presents to the two, placing the trays down in front of them. "Your father and I already ate earlier this morning, so it'll just be the two of you now. Bon appétit!", she exclaims. As she walks off over towards the living room, she stops and turns around.

"Oh, and Sila..", she begins again. Sila looks up from her plate and locks eyes with the raven-haired woman.

"Your mother called me again this morning, and told me to tell you to hurry up and get home as soon as possible. She has a surprise for you".

"A surprise..?", Sila's heartbeat picks up pace.

The woman jestfully smirks at her, and goes back to her living room journey.

* * *

Hey, you made it!  
Thanks for sticking with me through the first two chapters of this story.  
I hope you enjoyed it.

Anyways, I want to apologize again for the long delay regarding this update. I'll try to get rolling on the works for this story so you'll have updates to look forward to come a few days separation time per chapter, however, I don't want to get your hopes up for nothing. Thus, I can't guarantee anything, but I promise you all that I'll try to the best of my abilities! That's all I really have to say..

Other than that, please leave me a review do you see fit, and thank you again for taking the time to get through chapter 2 of The Water, Him and I. Until next time, my fellow fanfiction readers~

Much love,

K.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey! Welcome back dear readers.  
K here. Anyways this is Chapter 3 of The Water, Him, and I.

I'm extremely, extremely sorry for such a late update!

First and foremost, I wanted to say thank you to AzuraOfGlass, Cookie-Sugar and SydneyTheHybrid23 for your reviews! I'm so glad you're already enjoying the story only two chapters in.. Make that three now when you get the chance to see this!

Anyways, I apologize that the story might seem a bit slow, but I don't want to rush it either. This will be the last chapter dedicated to Sila and Haru's time in the sixth grade. I'm thinking of taking out only dramatic scenes from Sila's life that are involved within each grade (sixth and up), and using that for the basis of each chapter. I don't want you all to get super bored reading every single detail of Sila's elementary school life. After all, all the better things should be happening in high school right? *wink wink*

Anyways, without further ado, here's to Chapter 3~

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own the series Free! Iwatobi Swim Club, it's characters, plot-line or any qualities involved the series such as; setting, and etc. All credit rightfully goes to Masahiro Yokotani. I only claim credit for the OC character, Sila Mallory and other names original to the story, but irrelevant to the actual anime.

* * *

"_I wonder what it is…_"

Sila wolfs down her meal in much excitement. The smile gracing her face is fairly wide. The better expression that befits her smoothly rounded cheeks and defined cocoa irises. Haru could've sworn he saw a twinkle in her eye much to his own indifferent happiness. By any means necessary would he do everything in his power to keep this little girl happy. He knows it just as well as anyone else does, he cares and cares a lot. When Sila finishes her food, she takes her dishes over to the kitchen and places them in the sink. She returns to the dining table where Haru is still eating and props herself back up onto the seat next to him. She sits there, her elbows on the table as to form a 'Y' and her head resting in her hands. She swings her legs back and forth and hums a soothing little tune to herself while she daydreams about the surprise to come when she gets home. Haru keeps a dull stare on his food and with a fork still lingering against his lips, he speaks.

"Why aren't you going home yet?", he asks while cutting off another piece of mackerel and placing it into his mouth, savoring the taste of each and every refreshing bite. Seemingly so, his eyes look like they're the ones beholding quite a twinkle now.

"I'm waiting for you!", Sila replies, then resumes her tune.

"Huh?", he looks over to her. His blasé blue eyes flicker to the side of her face for a split second then return to his plate. "Why?".

"What do you mean why?! I want you to come find out my surprise with me!", Sila insists a bit annoyed by such an obvious question. Then again, maybe it's not so much an obvious question to Haru as she thought. He sighed, but the sheer delight showed in his eyes. As soon as he finished, he repeats the process of properly setting aside his dishes and returns to the table. "Okay fine, are you ready to go?", he asks. She nods vigorously and hops off the seat. "I left my candy upsta—", "Mama, I'm going over to Aunt Katsumi's house with Sila." Haru interrupts. At this, Sila sucks in her top lip, pouting as she optimistically hits Haru over and over again.

"O-Ow! What the— What is it Sila?!", he groans, throwing a violent glare at the smaller child.

Sila frowns, and scrunches her eyebrows together angrily. "I'm always getting cut off, and it's like you never pay attention to me Haru-nii-chan!", she remarks and stomps off to get her candy by herself.

Haru sighs and stands his ground, massaging his temples with the tips of his index and middle fingers. "Ugggghhhhh.", he rolls his eyes and his mother speaks up. "_She's so needy._"

"Haruka, if you're going to go, leave now.", she looks up at the clock above the tv. "You both have plenty of time, but I'd rather her return home as early as possible than a few minutes til. Go."

"Yes Mama.", he replies and follows suit to go find Sila. She's just now making her way back down the stairs holding her bag, with a pout still glued to her facial expression. When she reaches the bottom of the stairs, she blows her bangs out of her face. A small hmph leaves her lips and she avoids looking in Haru's direction.

"Can you stop being so mad? Your mood's going to ruin your surprise..".

"No.", she replies bluntly.

"Sila, you know I'm always looking out to you. I always have, you baby.", his eyebrow twitching as he pinches her cheek. In a fit of pain, Sila gives in.

"Okay! Ow.. You're right, you're right! Let go! Ow!", she thrashes about. She turns her glare upwards and drives a stare of knives into Haru's own. He doesn't flinch at the sight. If anything, her mad face was nothing short but probably being the most adorable thing in the world. "Hmph.. I'm sorry Haru-nii-chan...", her eyebrows relax and the upset gloss to her eyes dulls down as Haru takes her hand and entwines their fingers. A small smirk tugs at the corner of his lips and it's obvious he's basking in some sort of triumphant aura.

"If you were really sorry, you wouldn't get all cranky and 'hmph' me like that all the time.. Let's just go.", he replies dragging her out the house.

_CREAK_~

_BAM_~

"Wha— I didn't even say bye to Auntie! H-Haru-nii-chan!", she gasps as the front door shuts and he continues his pace, grip tightening a little on hers.

"It's fine. You're probably coming back home with me again anyways."

"Why are you holding my hand? We're only going next door..", she states matter-of-factly.

"Huh..? O-Oh!". Haru lets go almost immediately and looks the other way as a faint fiat glow steals its way onto his stoic features. They make their way a good two meters or three over to Sila's house and ring the doorbell as per usual process. Sila's mother answered with great delight and proceeded to open up the gate so they could go inside.

"Welcome home Sila, Haruka-kun!".

"I'm homeee~! Mama, what's the surprise? What is it?!", Sila couldn't contain herself any longer.

"Ah! One moment darling.", she said and left to return with a sleeping mask. It was a fluffy black sleeping mask designed with a pink stitched border, pink outlined cat eyes and a small polka-dotted pink bow to top it all off. The thing even came with cat ears attached to it. The full package!

"Come here Sila.", she requests as Sila makes her way over to her mother.

"Turn around."

"O-Okay mama.. but what's this for?", Sila replies tilting her head back so her mother's face comes into view.

"Hush now.", Sila's mom replies, using her hands to force Sila's head back into position. She slips the mask onto the little girl's head and takes her hand.

"It's a surprise remember?"

She looks back over to Haru who is nonchalantly standing there staring blankly at Sila.

"Are you coming Haruka-kun?". His eyes trail upwards towards the mother's smiling face and he nods twice slightly. He follows suit walking behind Sila, watching her ever so closely. As Sila's mom is guiding her towards the living room, Sila's clumsiness leads her to tripping over herself. Even if she's holding hands with her mother, this doesn't prevent her from the inability to fall completely and hurt herself in some way.

"A-Ah!", she yells preparing for impact. When it doesn't come, she tenses up. A bit shook up she questions the almost accident quite curiously.

"I d-didn't f-fall..?" Sila doesn't have the greatest toleration for pain..

"My my!", her mother exclaims. "Sila, are you alright sweetheart? If Haruka-kun hadn't caught hold of you like that, you could've gotten hurt now!"

At this, Sila realizes that her free arm had a firm grasp holding onto it for proper stability.

"H-Haru-nii-chan..?"

"SILA, YOU CLOWN! YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN HURT!", he scolds. His eyebrows are scrunched together, and an atmosphere of panic is emanating from the very porcelain skin that embellishes his slender face.

"C-Clown…? What type of insult is that? Ahehehe..", Sila's mother brings her hand up to her face to cover her mouth and chuckles while she looks down at the small children with clear enjoyment. "_Ah.. Sila, it seems that fate has blessed you with the presence of your knight in shining armor earlier than expected. May you continue to always be happy._", she thinks to herself. Her smile of satisfaction falters unnoticeably into one of a more pained expression.

"KYAAA~ I-I'M SOORRRYYY HARU-NII-CHAN!", Sila frets.

"Thank you for catching Sila, Haruka-kun."

"It's fine."

They make their way into the living room where a square-shaped object is resting on the floor next to the coffee table. It's not wrapped, but a cutely designed sheet is covering it. A big, red bow finishes it off with that 'real gift' feel.

"Okay Sila, take off your mask!", Sila's mother gleams energetically. Sila slides it off her face and as soon as her sight takes hold of the bow, she forces her mother's grip off and squeals while dashing towards the sight. She then stands above the box, observing it eagerly.

"Nee mama, what is it? Huh?! What is it?!"

"Sila honey! My goodness, wait one moment would you?"

"Haru-nii-chan come here, come here! Look at this big box, it's my surprise! MY SURPRISE!"

Haru makes his way over and stands next to Sila. His face remains the usual, neutral and bored as he stares uninterestedly at the shape laid out before him.

"Mama can i open it now?!", Sila yells.

"Sila lower your voice! Hold on, hold on!", her mother replies taking out her cellphone and unlocking it in order to open the camera. She holds it up and angles it in perfection, in preparation for what Sila's about to witness as what just might be the greatest gift she's ever received.. Well, for a sixth grader that is.

"3..2...1..GO!", her mother cheers, pressing down on the button to start recording the video. Sila rips off the sheet and woah and behold, a small, fluffy creature enters her enthusiastic vision. Her draw drops and she looks back and forth between Haru and her mom, unable to speak though not knowing exactly how to react either. A few awkward seconds slip by and she screams.

"A PUPPY, A PUPPY! HARU-NII-CHAN DO YOU SEE IT?! YOU SEE IT DON'T YOU?! IT'S A PUPPY! I HAVE A PUPPY!"

"Yes I see it idiot. I'm standing right here."

Sila simply ignores him running straight into her mothers arms, not really noticing or caring about the somewhat negative connotation embedded in his words.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH MAMA! I LOVE HER!"

Sila's mother smiles and sighs in what seems like relief.

"Now Sila.. it's actually a 'he'. It's a boy.", she comments.

"OKAY A HE! I LOVE HE!"

"It's him Sila.. not he. I love HIM.", Haru corrects facepalming himself on the forehead. "_You'd think she'd have a clue.. We're in the sixth grade, not the first…_"

Sila runs back to the box and stares inside at the sleeping puppy. He's garnished with black fur, ambushed by patches of rust red encircling the lower parts of his legs and white undersides to his neck, chest and tail area. Sila continues staring, completely engrossed in the "small fry" that she would now be held responsible for.

"That's a Shiba Inu.", Haru throws in.

"Hm, hm.", Sila nods.

"He's only two months old.", Katsumi adds.

"Hm, hm.", Sila replies repetitively.

The puppy stretches and yawns, then looks up at the two giants quite wearily. Haru's eyes open and he continues to stare.

"_Cute…_"

"Well? What're you going to name it hun?", Sila's mom interrupts, tilting her head to the side with an inquisitive look.

Sila moves her eyes towards her mother and back down into the box. She smiles.

"Haru-nii-chan.", she says as the smile sweeping across her face grows even bigger.

"Huh? What do you want..?", questions Haru most blatantly. Sila's mom looks surprised only for a moment, then she smiles while studying Haru's face from over yonder at the couch. Clearly, she was the only one aware of what Sila actually meant by calling out his name. She puts her phone down on the glass table behind the two, and walks over to be beside the youngsters. She looks down into the box and reaches out to pick up the exhausted little puppy. She then hands the small animal to Sila who sits down on the floor cradling it in her lap tenderly, and goes to pick up her phone, returning to her position as their current photographer.

Sila hesitates for a moment, taking in the feeling of her new puppy's soft fur. "His name is Haru-nii-chan!", she exclaims. Haru, finally realizing what she meant, stares at her face with eyes even wider than when he was just observing the puppy a few moments ago. Sila's mom takes this opportunity to snap a few pictures of the two quickly, Haru's rare facial expression still intact before his sight settles off to the side. He's blushing again.

"W-Why..?", he murmurs sheepishly.

"Because..", Sila looks up to him and smiles wider, if that was even possible during this moment in time.

"Because..?"

"I love Haru-nii-chan!"

The words catch Haru off guard a little too fast as he chokes and spits out an imaginary drink. At this rather.. unexpected reaction, Sila and her mother break down in incredibly harsh laughter. The volume drowning out one another's as if they were in some sort of a competition. By the time they stop laughing, Haru is still frozen in place, Sila is chuckling quietly to herself while petting 'Haru-nii-chan', and her mother's busy wiping tears from the corners of her eyes.

"Now, now. It wouldn't be 'Haru-nii-chan' Sila. Just Haru would be fine."

"Ah! Okay, just Haru it is.. Hi Haru… Welcome to my family..", she says staring down gingerly at and embracing the small ball of fur resting peacefully in her lap.

"Wanna hold him Haru-nii-chan?"

"Uh.. Sure."

Sila gets up and attempts to pick up Haru by the top half of his fragile body. She secures her hands under the creases of where his front legs meet his torso and manages with much difficulty to get him off the ground.

"He's heavy..", she remarks as she walks over to Haru who has sat down on the floor himself.

Haru holds out his hands, and Sila delicately places her pup into them. Haru retracts his arms and begins petting the small, spotted animal. "He is heavy.", he says in agreement. Suddenly, the small black canine begins to cry in his hold.

"H-HE'S CRYING, WHAT DO I DO?", Haru panics, looking everywhere at once.

"Haruka-kun calm down! He's a puppy, that's what they do.", Katsumi reassures, a small concerned glow enlightening her settle features.

"Haru-nii-chan, you're really bad at this..", Sila purses her lips, mocking the young boy who's just barely beginning to accustom himself to all the yelping and position shifting that's happening under his silk fingertips. "T-Tch..", he submits, his face branded once more with the monotone he knows so well. The pup turns over in Haru's lap so he's positioned on his back and at this, Haru begins petting his belly in an attempt to calm the whimpering body. The tremors break gradually and little by little, Haru's fingers begin to receive a warm, wet sensation enveloping his digits. He tenses up for a moment and relaxes into the puppy's loving motions with the small smile that occasionally exposes itself across his refined profile.

"Look Haru-nii-chan! He likes you now.." Sila teases, crawling up into Haru's vicinity to get a better look at the charming scene unfolding before her.

"Haruka-kun." His face snaps up to the smirking middle aged woman who's settled herself on the blizzard-colored couch that's forming into the shape of her sinking body. His firm, embracing grasp loosens on the puppy and it crawls out making it's slow-paced return towards Sila. "We've known each other for quite a while.. This you're aware of I presume, yes?", she continues.

"Yes Auntie."

"Then can I count on you to help Sila raise him? This is her first pet after all, and I'm sure it would mean the world to her if you agreed to do so."

Lazy irises as crystal clear and blue as the sea forge a path towards the small girl sitting crisscross-applesauce just a few centimeters away. The glimmer in her eyes.. that shining smile ingrained on her soft complexion. It was a request that didn't even need to be asked of him.

"Of course Auntie.", he answers indubitably, ridding Katsumi of all worry surmounting her current totality. She smiles and gives him a thankful look, getting up and heading towards the kitchen.

"I'll prepare some snacks. Is homemade mochi okay?"

"Mhm!", Sila replies, laying down on the floor next to Haru, stroking the top his tiny head with the tips of her fingers.

Katsumi nods and looks over to Haru who seems a bit disappointed visage-wise.

"I'm sorry I don't have any mackerel for you today Haruka-kun.", Katsumi continues as if picking up on the somewhat gloomy aura.

"Huh? Oh.. No, mochi is fine.", Haru excuses his hidden desire. He isn't that big a fan of sweets, but he isn't unwilling to eat some every now and then especially if offered by family, or at least those who he considered such.

"Alright, mochi it is then! It might take a while, so please bear with it."

Katsumi puts on her apron and gets to work on the snacks and Sila gets up to go turn the t.v. on then returns to the other two who are stretched out on the floor next to each other. If Sila didn't know any better, she'd assume that Haru-nii-chan was already more captivated by Haru than she was. Although, that was likely the case this time.

A few hours later, when time has been found to have flown by most considerably, Sila, Haruka and puppy Haru are still playing around on the floor and watching t.v. Katsumi is nearly finished as she prepares the mochi on two similarly designed plates. One plate is sapphire blue with gray dolphins accessorizing the border, and the other is just the same. However, this one is white with pearl pink dolphins. As she fixes up the snacks, she turns towards the counter facing the living room and presses on the tip of a small table top bellhop bell. _DING~_ it sounds. Sila and Haru turn their heads towards the kitchen where Sila's mom is just barely making her way out of.

"Order up!", she jests. That bell is just a small knick knack she decided to bring home from their last visit to Tokyo. She often toys around with it whenever delivering or presenting food to Sila. It was something they both loved, cherished and enjoyed.. Something that in a sense, tied together their ever deepening mother-daughter bond that much more. It's presence also played the role of a wondrous attribute to represent the kind and comfortable atmosphere of the Mallory household. If there's one thing that had to be shared about Katsumi herself, was that she always had this yearning to bake, to serve, and that ultimately led to a dream of opening up a small café. One that would expose to the country and maybe even one day to the world, her passion for baking and creating new pastries and perfecting older ones with her own individual touch-ups.

"YAAAAAY, FINALLY! I was so hungry Mama!", Sila claps her hands together and makes her way to sit on the couch abandoning Haru and her puppy. "Sila…", he sighs to himself and picks Haru up to go return him to the box.

"Haru-nii-chan come on! The mochi is here!"

On the plates in front of Sila, are about eight different colored and shaped pieces of mochi. On Haru's , a select variety of sea creatures and on Sila's, a select variety of flowers. All were limited to being colored lavender, columbia blue, orpiment yellow, olive green, coral red, gamboge, champagne, and white. A mix of complex, specified colors all worked to perfection in terms of complimenting each other successfully.. This was rather in order to give off a more appealing visual effect. Boy, did her hard work pay off. They looked amazing. At this point, Sila wanted none other than to sink her teeth into them at that very moment. That was, until Haru interrupted her craving with a clearly displeased sigh.

She looks up and notices him giving her a slightly irked glare.

"What?", she questions clearly oblivious to his implication. As if picking up on Haru's intense stare, Katsumi smiles and goes to open her mouth when..

"Come wash your hands."

"Go wash your hands.", they both say at the same time.

Sila exchanges looks between the two and starts laughing uncontrollably, smacking the seat cushioning of the couch with her hands.

"HAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Haru merely stands there staring at the girl; his eyes squinted, eyebrows flat and mouth marginally open. With none other than Sila's laugh echoing throughout the entire space, the silence Haru was expressing in opposition was enough to cast off the sound of an awkward rush of air. Better yet, the rustle of one single leaf flying by. He just didn't get what was so funny.

"_Sila has a mind of her own._", he thinks to himself. He smiles and snapping out of it a few seconds later, he walks to her and takes her by the hand cutting short her amusement.

"Come on clown.", he says.

"Ahh.. Ahahaha.. Pfftt… Okay! Pffffftttt.. Hehehe.", she continues, wiping tears from her cheeks with the back of her free hand.

"You both better hurry up now! The ice cream inside the mochi's going to melt if you don't.", Katsumi warns them. They both nod and walk off.

"What the heck were you laughing at anyways?", he asks as they make their way to the bathroom. They get there and turn on the fossets. _RSSSHHHHHHH~_ In the process of washing their hands, Sila replies.

"You and mama said it at the same time! Hehehe."

"Really Sila?"

"I thought it was funny... Mmph.. HAHAHAHA!", she begins again.

Haru simply shrugs and wipes his hands dry. Sila does the same and returns to the living room where her mother is now taking her turn to embrace the puppy.

"Welcome back! Now hurry up and eat them you two.."

"Yes ma'am!", Sila obliges, saluting her mother merrily.

"Yes Auntie.", Haru bows.

They seat themselves on the couch, and before they begin to feast away, they clap twice.

"Itadekimasu!"

"Itadekimasu.", they say in unison.

They dig in. For Sila, there's nothing like sharing snacktime in the presence of her two most precious loved ones. Scratch that, welcome number three, and for all she's known up until now, the only three she's got.

* * *

Alright, that's it for Chapter 3!

You've been introduced to a bit of Sila's mother's personality and other insiders to her character which will play a significant role in later chapters to this story. As will puppy Haru. Feel free to leave me a review and tell me what you think so far! Constructive criticism as stated before, would be very much appreciated. What can I improve on? I'm also opening up to some new ideas for the story that you guys would like to see, therefore if you have any, please message me! Whether we're talking new concepts for the basis of the chapters or new (*cough*dramatic*cough*) scenes to unfold for a more appealing story, don't be afraid to let me know!

Thanks for being so patient and sticking with me so far.  
I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart!

Until chapter four~  
Much love,

K.


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